Conder Tokens- Born Out of Necessity
In 1775 the British government
ceased production of copper coins, both the half penny and penny. There may have
been a sound reason for this, however, the lack of small coinage quickly began
to hamper local trade and commerce. The coins still in circulation quickly
became very worn and they were soon circulating with light weight forgeries that
angered the public.
The government ceased production because (they
claimed) that the coins did not circulate. They didn’t circulate not because
they were not needed, but, rather, because there were a vast number of
counterfeit coins in circulation. These ‘bad’ coins were quickly spent, if
someone could pass them as a real coin, and the genuine British coins were
hoarded. Those coins that did circulate were quickly removed form circulation by
the counterfeiters and melted thereby producing from two to three new ‘coins’ of
their manufacture. This procedure netted the counterfeiter a nice profit. As a
result, the genuine coinage was hoarded by the populace and did not
circulate.
In addition, most of the available coinage that did circulate
was in the bigger cities and towns. In the smaller, more rural areas, coinage
was nearly non-existent. Something had to change. That being the situation, the
Parys Mining Company in Angsley, Wales, was a miner of copper. Since they had
the available resource (copper) they decided to produce half-penny and penny
tokens by themselves to alleviate the local problem. The coins were made of good
weight, that is equal to the crown mint’s legal weight, and guaranteed the
redemption (payment) of the tokens in royal money. With this assurance, the
tokens were well received by the local populace and beyond.
The popularity of the tokens was apparent by the vast numbers that began to be
produced, and with a short number of years there were thousands of different designs
in circulation. The fact that they did circulate is apparent by the heavy wear that is
seen on many of the tokens. The edges of the tokens were lettered, so that the holder
of the piece would know who had produced it, and could return it to the origin for
redemption in legal tender. Not often mentioned, this edge lettering also prevented the
pieces from having the edges ‘shaved’ which would have reduced the weight as
produced, and provided a profit to the individuals who so mutilated the pieces.
The tokens were so popular that many different designs were produced and in fact,
many designs were produced only for collectors, producing many scarce varieties.
These added varieties included mules, that is, pieces with one obverse and a reverse
that belonged to another token. Today these are also very collectible. By 1795 these
tokens were in plentiful supply and the public was tiring of them, especially since the
quality had begun to deteriorate. The British government finally decided that it was
time for them to act, so in 1797 the Royal mint began production of one and two
penny coins.
However, the popularity of collecting these tokens continued. In 1798 James Conder
(not Condor as often written) wrote the definitive resource for these amazing pieces,
titled "An arrangement of Provincial Coins, tokens, and medalets issued in Great Britain,
Ireland, and the colonies, within the last twenty years, from the farthing to the penny
size". Conder not only wrote about the tokens, he issued his own pieces, perhaps
explaining his interest in the tokens. His pieces included the legend 'Payable at
Conder's Drapery Warehouse Ipswich'.
For American collectors, you should be reminded of the Hard Times Tokens that
were issued from 1833 to 1843 during the great recession that occurred in the United
States as a result of the Jacksonian economic policies. In fact Jackson was often
satirized on many of the pieces. Then, collectors should also recall the Civil War
Tokens from 1862 to 1865, which circulated during the Civil War because most
federal coinage was hoarded while the populace waited to see who would win the
war. One major difference here was that many of the Civil War token issuers had
no intention of redeeming the tokens for legal currency at any time.
James Conder’s reference was to remain the definitive reference of
these tokens for nearly 100 years after its release. Copies of the original text
are available for download on line. And reissue copies may be available.
Regardless of how you collect them, they provide a fascinating look at an
amazing period of history, the beginnings of the Industrial Revolution.
An excellent resource for the modern collector is available free on line at
http://provincialtokencoinage.weebly.com/. Once you start to collect these amazing
pieces you will never be sorry.
Article contributed by Frank J. Colletti
Author A Guide Book of The Official Red Book of United States Coins
Co-Founder NumisSociety
In 1775 the British government
ceased production of copper coins, both the half penny and penny. There may have
been a sound reason for this, however, the lack of small coinage quickly began
to hamper local trade and commerce. The coins still in circulation quickly
became very worn and they were soon circulating with light weight forgeries that
angered the public.
The government ceased production because (they
claimed) that the coins did not circulate. They didn’t circulate not because
they were not needed, but, rather, because there were a vast number of
counterfeit coins in circulation. These ‘bad’ coins were quickly spent, if
someone could pass them as a real coin, and the genuine British coins were
hoarded. Those coins that did circulate were quickly removed form circulation by
the counterfeiters and melted thereby producing from two to three new ‘coins’ of
their manufacture. This procedure netted the counterfeiter a nice profit. As a
result, the genuine coinage was hoarded by the populace and did not
circulate.
In addition, most of the available coinage that did circulate
was in the bigger cities and towns. In the smaller, more rural areas, coinage
was nearly non-existent. Something had to change. That being the situation, the
Parys Mining Company in Angsley, Wales, was a miner of copper. Since they had
the available resource (copper) they decided to produce half-penny and penny
tokens by themselves to alleviate the local problem. The coins were made of good
weight, that is equal to the crown mint’s legal weight, and guaranteed the
redemption (payment) of the tokens in royal money. With this assurance, the
tokens were well received by the local populace and beyond.
The popularity of the tokens was apparent by the vast numbers that began to be
produced, and with a short number of years there were thousands of different designs
in circulation. The fact that they did circulate is apparent by the heavy wear that is
seen on many of the tokens. The edges of the tokens were lettered, so that the holder
of the piece would know who had produced it, and could return it to the origin for
redemption in legal tender. Not often mentioned, this edge lettering also prevented the
pieces from having the edges ‘shaved’ which would have reduced the weight as
produced, and provided a profit to the individuals who so mutilated the pieces.
The tokens were so popular that many different designs were produced and in fact,
many designs were produced only for collectors, producing many scarce varieties.
These added varieties included mules, that is, pieces with one obverse and a reverse
that belonged to another token. Today these are also very collectible. By 1795 these
tokens were in plentiful supply and the public was tiring of them, especially since the
quality had begun to deteriorate. The British government finally decided that it was
time for them to act, so in 1797 the Royal mint began production of one and two
penny coins.
However, the popularity of collecting these tokens continued. In 1798 James Conder
(not Condor as often written) wrote the definitive resource for these amazing pieces,
titled "An arrangement of Provincial Coins, tokens, and medalets issued in Great Britain,
Ireland, and the colonies, within the last twenty years, from the farthing to the penny
size". Conder not only wrote about the tokens, he issued his own pieces, perhaps
explaining his interest in the tokens. His pieces included the legend 'Payable at
Conder's Drapery Warehouse Ipswich'.
For American collectors, you should be reminded of the Hard Times Tokens that
were issued from 1833 to 1843 during the great recession that occurred in the United
States as a result of the Jacksonian economic policies. In fact Jackson was often
satirized on many of the pieces. Then, collectors should also recall the Civil War
Tokens from 1862 to 1865, which circulated during the Civil War because most
federal coinage was hoarded while the populace waited to see who would win the
war. One major difference here was that many of the Civil War token issuers had
no intention of redeeming the tokens for legal currency at any time.
James Conder’s reference was to remain the definitive reference of
these tokens for nearly 100 years after its release. Copies of the original text
are available for download on line. And reissue copies may be available.
Regardless of how you collect them, they provide a fascinating look at an
amazing period of history, the beginnings of the Industrial Revolution.
An excellent resource for the modern collector is available free on line at
http://provincialtokencoinage.weebly.com/. Once you start to collect these amazing
pieces you will never be sorry.
Article contributed by Frank J. Colletti
Author A Guide Book of The Official Red Book of United States Coins
Co-Founder NumisSociety